Soap-shaving device.



GLF. SHAVBR. SOAP SHAVING DEVICE.

APPLIUATION FILED SEPT. 9, 1901Y Patented Feb. 7, 1911.

G. F. SHAVBR. SOAP SHAVING DEVICE. APPLIGATION FILED smfT. 9, 1905.

v983,81 6, Patented F8117, 1911.

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GEORGE F. SHAVER, 0F NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO HYGIENIG SOAPGRANULATOR COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SOAP-SI-IAVING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 7, fllt..

To @ZZ whom it' may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE citizen of the United States, and resident ofNew York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have inventedcertain new and useful ln'iprovements in Soap- Shaving Devices, of whichthe following is a specification.

'lhis invention relates to a device which is primarily designed as atoilet fixture adapted for use in connect-ion with wash basins for thepurpose of supplying soap in such a form that it may be readily andeconomically used and is intended to do away with the use of a cake ofsoap in the ordinary manner in the hand.

it has been found by many experiments with soap in various forms thatwhen the soap is cut or shaved into thin narrow strips or shavings thesame dissolve or saponify very readily and consequentlyT a inuch smallerquantity is necessary in this than in any other form, as the entireamount shaved ofi' is dissolved and used, resulting. in a greatereconomy in the use of the soap.

To produce soap shavings in the form above described l provide a machinehaving a rotatable cutter and a scraper which is adapted to operate inconjunction with this cutter, s will be more fully describedhereina-fter.

l t has been found that much better results are produced when the cakeof soap is held against the cutter with a uniform pressure as the soapshavings will be of uniform thickness and the cutter is much less liableto clog and will operate much more smoothly and efficiently under theseconditions.

In order to hold a cake of soap against the cutter with a uniformpressure I provide a device which is in the nature of a laz F. SHAVER,

tongs actuated by a spring. One end of the series of toggle levers isfixed in position and the opposite or moving end attached to a diskadapted to press against one end of the cake of soap and hold the saineagainst the cutter. rihe operation of this feature of the device will bemore fully explained in the drawings accompanying this specification.

ln the drawings like parts have been given similar reference numbers ineach of the figures.

Figure l is a side elevation of a device embodying my invention havingport-ions thereof broken away showing the interior construction. Fig. 2is a vertical, central cross-section, showing the relative position ofthe several parts of the device. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the lineSq?) of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a cross section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.Fig. 5 is a cross-section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2 Fig. 6 is a crosssectional view of the cutter taken on the line 6 6 of Fig 4. Fig. 7 isan end view of the scraper, shown in plan view in Fig. 5.

n the soap shaving device which l have chosen to illustrate my inventionin the drawings herewith a vertical soap container l, is preferablycylindrical in form constructed of sheet inetal and provided with asuitable cover 2. A support or bracket 3 of suit-able form may beprovided for attaching the same to the wash basin or toilet fixture withwhich it is to be used. One end of such a bracket is shown at 3 where itprojects through the container l and is riveted thereto thus forming asupport for a vertical shaft which is adapted to rotate the cutter 5. A.suitable handle and lever such as 6 is provided at the upper end of saidshaft which projects through a suitable bearing in t-he cover 2. Thisbearing is of peculiar construction and is so designed as to prevent anywater leaking through the cover to the interior of the container. As thehands of the operator are often wet this might readily occur.

The upper end of the shaft is iiattened on two sides and adapted toreceive the handle 6. An inverted cup shaped member is held in positionagainst the shoulder formed by the aforesaid flattened portion of theshaft 4, by the handle 6, which may be held in place by riveting overthe upper end of the shaft. A supporting member 8 is fastened to theinside of the cover 2 and into this member 8 is forced a bushing 9,which is held thus in position so as to preserve the alinement of theshaft 4. This construction provides a substantial bearing which willprevent any water from leaking from the outside of the cover to theinterior of the soap container.

A collar lO is secured to the shaft 4 and provides a shoulder whichprevents the shaft 4 from being' forced upwardly by the action vof thelazy tong levers. An outer sleeve 11 surrounds the aforesaid collar andthe lower end of the supporting member S and forms a support againstwhich the col.- lar 10 may rest and so retains the shaft l in position.Two sets of lazy tong links 12 and 13 are pivotally attached to theaforesaid sleeve 11 on opposite sides thereof and a second pair ofcrossed levers 14: and 15, pivoted at their intersection, are attachedthereto forming a device known as the lazy tong. At the outer ends ofthese levers a coil spring is attached which is normally under tensionand operates to pull the outer pivotal points together and so force thelowerend of the levers downward, as will be seen by referring to Fig. 2.n

At the lower end the levers 14 and 15 a set of links 16 and 17 areattached and also a spring connecting the outer ends thereof whichoperates in the same manner and in conjunction with the one alreadydescribed. The lower ends of the links 16 and 17 are pivotally attachedto a sleeve 18, which is in turn attached to a disk 19 which engages theupper surface of the cake of soap 20. It is thus seen that the operationof this lazy tong device is to force the disk 19 downward against thecake of soap thus holding the saine against the rotating cutter 5. Itwill also be seen that when the disk 19 is in its uppermost position thesprings 21 and 22 will be extended and will exert the maximum. pull onthe levers, but in this position the pivotal points of the levers aremore nearly in a straight line and consequently the resultant pressuredownward at right angles to the line of pull of the spring is at itsminimum. As the disk moves downward the relative resultant actionincreases o-n account of tie increased leverage due to the relativeposit-ionv of the several pivotal points, but the actuating force of thespring at the same time decreases and consequently a unifo-rm downwardpressure is produced from the highest to the lowest position of thedisk.

lWhen the disk is in its uppermost posi tion the pivot-al centers of thelevers are so nearly in a line with the pull of the springs 21`and 22that it has been found desirable to use an auxiliary spring 23 which iscarried loosely upon the shaft 1 and rests against a collar 24C which issecured tothe disk 19. This auxiliary spring 23 is of such a length thatitis not brought into action except over approximately the last third ofthe travel of the disk to and from its uppermost position. It is thusseen that maximum downward thrust of this auxiliary spring 23 willv beat thepoint where the pivotal points of the levers, which are actuatedvby the springs 21 and 22, are in nearly a straight line and the objectof this auxiliary Vspring is to insure the positive operation of thewhole mechanism and prevent the levers from becoming locked in positionon account of the friction between the parts or other causes.

The cutter 5 is provided with a centrally located hub or shaft 2 5,which is secured thereto. The upper portion of this hub provided withtwo projections or ears 26. A sleeve or extension 27 is attached to thelower end of the shaft 4l and is provided with slots adapted to engagethe aforesaid projections 26 on the hub 25 and so form a separableconnection between the shaft and cutter for rotating the latter when thehandle is turned. YThis construction permits the removal of the cover ofthe con tainer together with the shaft and attached parts, leaving` thecutter in place in the container.

The lower port-ion of the hub 25 extends through the support and at thelowerI end thereof is attached a cleaning plate 28. This plate ispreferably formed from ay thin sheer of metal having` a portion thereofbent into circular' form providing` an opening adapted to receive thelower end of the hub shaft 25. This opening is of such a size that theplate fits tightly over the shaft and is rotated thereby but in case itmeets with any ohstruction other than the soap shavings the shaft willslip in the opening and will not be prevented from rotating. The objectof this cleaning plate is to prevent the accumulation of the soapshavings which are very thin and light and are very apt to lodge andcollect in the lower portion of the container instead of falling freelyinto thc hands of the operator as intended.

The cutter 5 is of such a construction as to shave or cut the cake ofsoap into thin narrow shavings and to accomplish this result a serieso'f serrated cutting edges, preferably in the form of saw teethprojectimls, are provided. A simple and cheap design of such a cutter isshown in Fig. 4. This cutter is formed from a disk of metal slightlysmaller in diameter than the interior of the container. This disk hasportions thereof cut away and on the advancing edge of these openingssaw teeth projections are provided having the points thereof bentslightly upward above the surface of the disk and having a sharp cuttingedge inclined at about 35 degrees with the plane of the disk. A crosssection of one of these cutting teeth is shown in F ig. (l. Openings inthe disk are of large size in order that the soap shavings will readilyfall through and not collect and clog the cutter.

The several series of cutting edges are preferably arranged so as toextend radially from thecenter of the disk and in order to providegreater strength and rigidity alternate series extend only a part of thedistance from the center to the circumference,

llO

one series extending from the center a part of the way outward and theadjacent series extending from the circumference a part of the wayinward. This arrangement provides a cutter which will cut the entiresurface of the soap and at the same time allows the disk to be so formedthat a much stronger construction is provided than would be the case ifeach series of cutting edges extended to the center from thecircumference.

Mounted upon the support 3 is provided a scraper 29, which is preferablyconstructed of thin sheet metal and adapted to be slipped over thesupport 3, as shown, so that the upper surface thereof will be adjacentto the under surface of the cutter. rlhis scraper is provided with aprojection 30 at one side thereof having a sharp edge and is intended tocut away or scrape off the soap shavings which hang below the cutter.This has been found to be very effective in preventing` the accumulationof lsoap shavings which would clog the cutting edge and so prevents themost effective operation thereof. The relative position of this scraperand cutter is shown in Figs. 2 and 4 and the scraper is shown in detailin Figs. 5 and 7.

The cake of soap is of a construction especially adapted for use withthis machine and is preferably cylindrical in form and of slightlysmaller diameter than the interior of the container. A central openingin 'the cake is provided which is of such a size as to permit the shaft4to be operated theretln'ough. At one side of the container a projectionor fin 3l is provided and a corresponding slot or keyway is provided a tone side of the cake of soap. This slot engages the fin 3l and the soapis prevented from rotating with the cutter. A similar' slot is providedin the disk 1S), which preferably corresponds in its outline to the endof the cake of soap, as shown in Fig. 3, which also engages the fin 3land so prevents the dish' and attached lazy tong device from rotatingwith the shaft.

'lhe construction of the cake of soap and the relative location of theretaining fin is shown clearly in F ig. 3. The cover of the container lis adapted to fit over the outsiccof the upper end thereof. Projectingpins such as 32'from opposite sides of the container l enter openings 33in the cover. llhis forms an ordinary bayonet joint and as the cover' ispressed into place a turn brings the pin into the horizontal portion ofthe openings 33 thus locking the cover in place.

Referring to Fig. l, a lever 34 is pivoted to the cover at one sidethereof and is held against' a stop in such a position that one endthereof closes the horizontal portion of the opening 33 above referredto. As the cover is forced down upon the top of the container the end ofthe lever 34 is raised by the pin 32, allowing the same to pass into thehorizontal portion of the slot as shown. Thespring above referred toforces the lever into the position shown and the cover is locked inposition until a key is inserted in the opening 35 provided therefor andturned so as to raise the lever 34 and release the pin in the bayonetjoint. This provides a simple and effective lock for preventing thecontainer from being opened.

lt will be evident that the several features of my invention may be usedindividually and apart from one another if desired as well as combinedin one device, as shown in the drawings.

As many changes may be made in the details of construction and manyapparently different embodiments of my invention could be made withoutdeparting from the scope thereof, l intend that all matter contained in-the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall beinterpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What I claim is:

l. n a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, and means for feeding a cake of soap tosaid cutter comprising a plurality of levers connected to form a lazytong or toggle, and resilient means for operating said toggle to producea substantially uniform pressure.

2. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for op erating said cutter, a plurality of levers forming a lazytong or toggle device, and a spring connecting two of said levers forop* erating said device to hold the cake of soap in position against thecutter with a substantially uniform pressure.

3. In a soap dispensing device, the combination with a container, of acutter located within said container, a follower mounted in saidcontainer, a lazy tongs device located between said follower and theupper end of the container, a resilient means for actuating said lazytongs to normally tend to force said follower toward the cutter, andmeans for actuating the cutter, said means comprising a shaft and ahandle mounted upon said shaft upon the exterior of the container.

4. ln a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, a plurality of levers forming a lazytong or toggle device, resilient means connecting two of said levers,and an auxiliary resilient means coperating therewith to operate saiddevice to hold the cake, of soap in position against the cutter. j

5. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersection, a pair of links pivotally attached tosaid levers and each other and resilient means operatively connected tosaid levers to hold a cake of soap in position against said cutter.

6. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersection, a pair of. pivotally connected linkspivotally attached to said levers, and resilient means operativelyconnected to said levers -to hold a cake of soap in position against thecutter.

7. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersection a pair of links pivotally attached tosaid levers and to each other, a spring connecting` said levers adaptedto be put under tension as the levers are separated, and an independentauxiliary spring cooperating therewith to close the same when releasedto hold the cake of soap in position against said cutter.

8. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersection, a pair of links pivotally attached tosaid levers and to each other, a spring connecting said levers adaptedto be put under tension as the levers are separated, and an auxiliaryspring cooperating therewith through a portion only of the tr. vel ofsaid levers to close the same when released to hold the cake of soap inposition against the cutter.

9. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersection, a pair of links pivotally attached toeach end of saidlevers, a fixed support and a movable follower plate towhich said links are respectively attached, and resilient means Yoperatively connected to said levers to hold the cake of soap inposition against the cutter.

10. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter, and a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersection, a pair of links pivotally attached toeach end of said levers, a fixed support and movable support to whichsaid links are respectively attached, and a spring operatively connectedto said levers, and an independentauxiliary spring adapted to becompressed between said supports cooperating with the aforesaid springto extend the device to hold the cake of soap in position against saidcutter.

` 11. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, acutter, means for operating said cutter, a pair of crossed lcverspivotally connected at their intersection, a pair of links pivotallyattached to each end of said levers, a fixed and movable support towhich said links are respectively attached, a spring operativelyconnected to said levers adapted to close the same, and an auxiliaryspring adapted to be compressed between said supports through a portionof the travel thereof cooperating with the aforesaid spring to extendthe device to hold the cake of soap in position against the cutter.-

12. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,a shaft for operating said cutter, means for operating said shaft, aplurality of levers forming a lazy tong or toggle device, resilientmeans connecting two of said levers, and an auxiliary spring cooperatingtherewith and surrounding said shaft to operate said device to hold thccake of soap in position against the cutter.

18. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, a cutter,means for operating said cutter a pair of crossed levers pivotallyconnected at their intersect-ion, a pair of links pivotally attached toeach end of said levers, a fixed support forming a part of the cover ofsaid machine and a movable support to which said links are respectivelyattached, and resilient means operatively connected to said levers tohold a cake of soap in position against said cutter.

14;. In a soap shaving machine, the combination of a container, acutter, means for operating said cutter, alazy tong device consisting ofa pair of crossed levers, a pair of links pivotally attached to each endof said levers a fixed support forming part of said machine and amovable support adapted to hold the cake of soap in position againstsaid cutter to which said links are respectively attached, and resilientmeans operatively connected to said levers to press said movable supportagainst the cake of soap and hold said cake in position against saidcutter.

l5. In a soap dispensing machine, in combination, a container for a cakeof soap, a cutter mounted therein, a follower adapted to force said cakeagainst the cutter, a fixed support, lazy tongs interposed between saidfixed support and said follower and connected with each of said parts,and means engaging said lazy tongs tending constantly to extend thesame.

Signed at New York in the county of New York and State of New York thiseighth day of September A. D. 1905.

GEORGE F. SIIAVER. lVitnesses:

. II. W. FonsYTI-r,

LEWIS J. DooLrr'rLE.

